Unexpected Encounter: A Second Chance at Love

Rachael widened her eyes in shock. "No, that is not what I meant." Without giving him any time to misinterpret her words, she quickly explained, "Since I am shorter and smaller than you, I think it will be more convenient if I take the couch and—"

Before she could complete her sentence, he interrupted her. "You have to take the bed and I'll take the couch."

"But—"

"I will be fine, don't worry." There was no way he would let her sleep on the couch while he comfortably slept on the bed.

Rachael opened her mouth to argue with him but she didn't say anything. She knew it was useless to argue with him. He would never allow her to sleep on the couch.

"I have some pending work to finish, I'll be in the study room." He then grabbed his nightwear from the wardrobe. "There is a washroom there as well, I'll take shower there."

Without waiting for her reply, he walked out. 𝗳𝒓𝙚e𝓌e𝚋𝙣𝚘𝐯𝙚𝙡.𝑐૦ｍ

Rachael was about to stop him but he was already gone. For some reason, she felt very bad and guilty.

Helplessly shaking her head, she sighed. There was nothing she could do at the moment. The man was too stubborn and would definitely not listen to any of her suggestions.

…..

After taking a quick shower, Rachael stepped out of the room. She had already slept a lot in the afternoon and wasn't sleepy at all. So to curb her boredom, she decided to go to the garden for a quick walk. 𝒇𝑟𝐞𝐞w𝐞𝑏𝙣𝑜vℯl.co𝑚

It was already close to midnight and the house was dimly lit. She contemplated for a while and eventually dropped the idea of taking a late night walk.

She was about to return back when a brightly lit room in the extreme corner caught her attention.

….

[Study room]

After taking a shower, Andrew was busy reviewing a document Ben had dropped over when he was out for dinner with Rachael earlier.

He was fully engrossed when a low crackling sound of the door caught his attention.

"I-I am sorry, I didn't mean to disturb you."

"Not feeling sleepy?" He asked.

Rachael shook her head. "I slept a lot in the afternoon."

"Why are you standing outside?" He kept the document down. "Come in."

"It's okay, I'll go to the room. You should continue with your work." She was just trying to peek to see what he was doing. But who would have Andrew would notice her so quickly.

"You don't wanna come inside?"

Left with no other choice, Rachael entered the study room.

The room was almost half of the size of their bedroom. The set up of the room was similar to that of an office. The shelves were stacked with files and books. There was a couch near the window with a coffee table in the center.

There were many boxes on the floor with different labels on it.

"Ignore the mess, I haven't got the time to unbox them," Andrew remarked.

"You want some help?" She asked. "I can help you arrange them."

"Let's do it tomorrow, okay? I'll help you arrange your things as well."

"Okay."

Andrew smiled at her response. He liked how she didn't hesitate to take his help.

"So what are you reading?" She curiously inquired.

Without saying anything, he picked up the document and walked towards the couch. "Come sit."

When she sat beside him, he gave her the document. "Do you know about the Jenchua enterprise?"

"Yes," she nodded. "But didn't that go bankrupt last month?"

"It did."

Jenchua Enterprise was one of the finest enterprises in the country. It always ranked in the top 100 until last month when it was suddenly declared bankrupt. The stock of the company plummeted drastically overnight and was never revived back. The millions worth company now valued almost nothing.

"What about that company?" The sudden mention of Jenchua Enterprise piqued her interest.

"Our company bought it," he remarked. "It's now a subsidiary of Collins Cooperation."

"Why? The last time I heard, it was running at a great loss."

"Hmm—the position of the company right now is worse than I expected but I am sure we can do something about it." Noticing the curiosity and interest on her face, he further explained, "Though the company suffered a huge blow and couldn't keep up, the name and the years of built prestige still holds a high account. Stocks can be easily revived, but reputation and name is what takes years to build."

After hearing the explanation, everything made sense to Rachael. With Collins Cooperation influence and status, it wouldn't be hard for them to get Jenchua Enterprise back into business. The stock value would definitely go back to normal in no time.

"What are you thinking?"

She shook her head. "Nothing—" Pointing towards the document, she asked, "Can I read it?"

Without saying anything, he gave it to her.

Just then his phone which was on the table started ringing.

When he saw the caller ID, he excused himself. "I'll be back soon."

…..

[Garden]

"What took you so long?" Owen's annoying voice echoed from the other side. "Don't tell me I disturbed you while you were in action."

"Did you reach?" Andrew smoothly ignored his question.

"I landed a couple of hours ago." When Andrew did not say anything, Owen chuckled, "I wouldn't have disturbed your sweet time with sister-in-law if it wasn't important."

"I know."

"The news about your marriage is already out. Given how clean Rachael's family background is, it's clear that you didn't marry her for other reasons."

When Owen did not say anything further, Andrew asked, "What else?"

"Grandfather knows about it too and he will definitely not sit quietly." Pausing for a while, he added, "I can handle everything but him."

Andrew wasn't the only one who didn't have a decent relationship with the family back in Russia. Owen wasn't an exception.

Though Owen and Andrew's capabilities were at par, when it came to their grandfather, Semion Volkov, only Andrew could handle him.

"He has been trying to contact me constantly for the past few days."

"Sneaky ba*stard," Owen scoffed. "I won't be shocked if he flies all the way over there."

….